Annoyed by SMS.ac

I am very annoyed by SMS.ac right now. The reality is I should be annoyed with myself for not being up to date with my address book in my e-mail client. I got an invitation SMS.ac from Joi Ito and figured that it was a legit service and something to be investigated. In the middle of registration it asks for information regarding your e-mail account and then spasm your whole address book with invitation.

 

On a normal day that would be no big deal but sine my address book is so out of date, I think 2 ex-girlfriends got the invitation e-mail. I have received 3 e-mails from people I have not talked to in years and am praying that this is the end of the uncomfortable interactions and explanations. 

 

Although SMS.ac is a cool tool the registration process and address book spamming is enough to discourage me from putting their link on this post. 

Comments

[Joi Ito]

Sorry about that. I ended up spamming my friends before I realized what I was doing. I think it took everyone on my MSN Messenger buddy list and sent an email to them. I also got the invite from someone very legit and figured it was a good service. Oops. (I've removed myself from the service.) I read on a Japanese blog that it keeps spamming new people you add to your buddy list. Ugh.

[ff]

aaa

[jerry]

Here I post I real life complain I made to them

Hi:

In last email I reported that the company: www.sms.ac (located at San Diego, CA) has been secretly grabbed my whole contact email address from my computer and then keep sending emails to everybody IN MY NAME WITHOUT MY PERMISSION, and ask them to join the SMS cellphone network IN MY NAME AGAIN AND AGAIN-----this has caused huge misunderstanding and troubles for me and make my whole life upside-down these days. One of www.sms.ac employees replied me and tell me that www.sms.ac has cancelled my account in www.sms.ac database.

I here thanks for www.sms.ac quick response, however, the explain is very pale and weak, the original webpage was designed to mislead customer, especially, the website does not offer any choice for customer to stop such abusing after they realize their whole contact information has been grabbed and abused by www.sms.ac . In fact, I found this immediately (cause many people started to call me) next day after I wrongly registered in www.sms.ac website ("invited" by one of my friends, she herself meet exact the same situation as I meet currently, we are both furious about www.sms.ac company at this time, not finished yet, one of my other friends in Hongkong called me that she meet exactly same situation because she got my email: currently her address book has been grabbed by you and now she has to explain to all her customers around China and United States because of this.

We all found out that, even we realized that out address book has been abused by www.sms.ac , we just could not do nothing about it or stop it, and www.sms.ac keep sending email again and again like '2nd request', '3rd', '4th' request to everybody IN OUR NAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!. It cause huge problem for me in my life:

My customer think I am just a naughtboy, my professor think I am weird, and my potential employer think I am irresponsible person. My ex-girl friend think I want to get back to her and my wife get her message (Becaues of my whole address book has been abused by www.sms.ac this company!!) .........especially when this email was sent again and again in last week, somebody begin to complain to school network manager that I am an email SPAMMER in this department--------Because I am in charge of a certain computation resources and I was currently suspended for multiple school network resources because of my "misconduct" (that means I cannot fully work or do my research). Also, because I am a member of multiple large email-list related to my work, all the member begin to complain that I am not a responsible person by abusing their email list.

Do all these just sounds like joke to you, is it???!! I am asking you: www.sms.ac? Is this what this company want to do to making jokes about a normal person and then are laughing at me? You, www.sms.ac you ugly USING-MY-NAME SPAMMER!! Shame on you!! You have made my whole life upside-down these days. Do you know how much people hate you--------the most ugly SPAMMER is those who SPAM with other people's name and address!!!

If you people in www.sms.ac do have brain, think how much damage you can to do everybody. is all you want to do? SPAMMER?

But, finally, and, anyway, I am just a normal person and I donot have any interest to fight with you, so, I thank you for canceling my account, but many people like me who 'accidentally" hit by your such disgusting business promotion mode have been collecting every evidence and damage that you have done to us. Change your policy, at least, DONOT USE OUR NAMES!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (I really want to f*** you when I think about this). Please realize "abusing" other people's information is extremely incorrect and can cause many potential problems for normal person like me. Otherwise, somebody, finally will sue you sooner or later. (Especially one of my friends, she is more furious than me this weekend!! Do you want to know her situation?----just image if you are in charge of a serious toy import-export company but you suddenly become so "naughty" to invite every customer around the whole world to join your cell phone message network???!! And again and again in few days? what will this do to a global sales manager!!-----I DO NOT think she will NOT sue you if she loses a customer or job because of this)

The last thing, please google www.sms.ac with "SCAM' or "SPAM", This name and this company HAS BEEN very NOTORIOUS already!

Sincerely,
Jerry

[Mak Nicolaou]

I have registered to sms.ac two years for free smsm ago but i do not know how the terms changed and at the begin ng i was charged about 2 pounds a month but i didnt give much of a notice... the last three months i was charged in december for 15 pounds... i was very furious... i called my provider tand i asked them to stop .... but they didnt...in jfebruary i received the january bill and i was charged for 10 pounds then they idvice me to send a stop message to that number(sms.ac) ... when i did that in two days they send me so many messeges costing 70 pounds... i was so furious... about... that that i stoped the direct debit of my phone... i was no longer willing to pay for something that i never wanted... is the prociders responsibility to protect their customers

[BB]

Nice to know that I am not the only one who has suffered from the SMS email appropriation fiasco. I received random emails from exes and others I have not spoken to in years.... I only discovered why when a kind friend from my Amnesty group wrote me an email notifying me that mail was being sent in my name. Wow, incredible.

[Veronica]

Okay- random-

Just so you know that your research is making a difference, lol... I received a random email in my inbox today from sms.ac that said to click to confirm my relationship with some person that I had actually blocked a number of months ago... i didn't want to click on it because i didn't want to encourage this guy so I googled sms.ac and your site came up immediately. I'm grateful, believe it or not. Have a great week!
Veronica

[safak tan dogan]

bu ne ya

[Jack Soul]

Nice, Im getting sms.ac messages to my cell phone from people I don't even know!!!

[Sherry]

I am annoyed with the sms.ac system too. It spammed everyone in my address book without my permision and my professor in my university had even questioned me about it. I had just cancelled my account just now (a little too late though), after all the embarassment it had caused. How upsetting!

[mille]

salut millo

[Tege]

I ended my membership at sms.ac three days ago since i didn't need it and suddenly i started to receive loads of sms from people who want to become my friend... when i try to login it says my account is "cancelled" so i'm not able to do anything! It seems like i'm charged about $0.5 for each sms...

is there anything i can do? i've mailed them.. no reply (ofcourse)

[Very Mad]

Hase anybody tried to find a phone number to this company?

[A]

maybe someone can aply for a job there?

those #####, spamming me!!!!

http://hotjobs.yahoo.com/jobseeker/jobsearch/job_detail.html;_ylt=AplD8u5htGvSjuPijpfhxEX6Q6IX?job_id=J774135PT&search_url=%2Fjobseeker%2Fjobsearch%2Fsearch_results.html%3Fkw%3Dchamber%2Bof%2Bcommerce%26type%3Dmain%26country1%3DUSA%26page_number%3D1%26order_by%3Dlocation%26search_type_form%3Dquick%26updated_since%3Danytime%26TEMPLATE%3D%252Fhtdocs%252Fjob-search.html%26related_titles%3D6%26intl%3Dus%26keywords_all%3DSMS.ac%252C%2BInc.&keywords_any=&keywords_all=SMS.ac%252C%2BInc.&keywords_phrase=

[Engin]

Hello everybody..This SMS.AC business is ripping people off ! initially I received an e-mail from my friend and I became a member of SMS.AC, since then I also started receiving so many messages and they are all useless. I didn't even bother to read them at all, I was just deleting them straigh away but I didn't know what I was being charged 50 Pence for each messages. When I had my bill, I saw that I had been charged for receiving their silly messages, I contacted with my Network Providers but they couln't do anything about it..The only thing they did is that giving me their number to contact with them.Moreover, I have been charged about 40 Pounds on my next bill.. I was really mad this time. Can you imagine that stupid situation? and finally I connected their website and unsubscribed my account.. That is the way how I got rid off this thing.. and please let your friends know that it is a rip off !!

[Lozlo]

Thank you all for your letters posted here. You helped me a lot. I was so close to push the SEND button after completing the SMS.AC form with my password.

I started to think that something's fishy here. What the hell do they need my password for? I've started a to google the cyberspace and found you guys shoked by the tensions they've created.

I've canceled the registration procedure, and within one hour I've received a letter from sms.sc saying that I'm from seconds to complete my registration form. They even bothered to send me the form with the data I've already completed.

Once again, thank you all you've posted your outrage. And sorry for what happened to you.

[Paxton31]

Help! I cancelled my account with sms.ac quite some time ago because I was receiving text messages from people I don't know and getting dinged for it by my carrier. I'm STILL receiving messages and I don't know how to stop it. I've contacted customer service and received one response telling me to "log into my account and..." I already told them I no longer have a frickin' account. I may have to change my phone number!

[Randy]

Paxton I am so sorry to hear your experience with SMS.AC. The best thing I can do at the moment is to have your carrier turn off your SMS service, or see if you can get it forwarded to an E-mail address. I feel for you but don't have a simple solution.

[Oliver Starr "Stitch"]

I've just blogged about SMS.ac's new Mobile Bill or Rights over at http://www.mobile-weblog.com I'd welcome more comments from people that have had experiences (Good or Bad) with SMS.ac to present a balanced argument. My own negative experience is detailed as well.

It strikes me as ludicrous that one of the most seemingly corrupt companies in the mobile space has the audacity to promote itself via a "Consumer's Bill of Rights" when SMS.ac is the violator par excellence of those rights in my own experience.

-Oliver Starr
www.mobile-weblog.com

[Charlotte]

I have recently been receiving messages from this sms ac thing. I hate it. I dont know what to do. Each message is 50p and i cant stop it iv deleted my account and sent the message STOP to the number. I dont know what to to and its eating all my money. Can someone please help!

[matus]

Hello people...
i have same experience....it is very stupid organization.they steal money from people.i am vary angry because they send me stupid sms with stupind invitation from people than i don't know.than i don't know how cancled it.a think than i must change my number.shit.if someone have good idea how i cancle it please write me mail...thanks...:((.....

[tanti prastanti]

Dear manager,

i want to stop join this sms.ac right now please. it's so urgent because i dont get any benefit from this sms only decrease my mobile phone account. please stop your activity inform anything that reduce my account right now! just inform anything through my email. thank you

[tanti prastanti]

Please stop your information that u sent to my mobile phone right now!!!! JUST EMAIL ME!
sms.ac frustates me! thank you

[tanti prastanti]

MR/mrs manager,
we r different country (sms.ac n Indonesia). ur strategy is wrong by charge customer here (indonesia) 2200 rupiah/sms just only inform that there are new friends to be varified. Please stop your information that u sent to my mobile phone right now!!!! JUST EMAIL ME!
sms.ac frustates me! thank you. STOP IT

[tanti prastanti]

Mr/mrs,

i have sent sms for 3times STOP FRND through my mobile phone but sms.ac always send new friend information that reduce MY ACCOUNT. i want to quit from ur community right now
thank you

[Jo]

I've been receiving text msges everyday to my mobile and getting charged 50p per text! I wasn't even aware that I had joined to SMS.ac website. My advice to anyone wanting to stop these nuisance texts and RIP OFF prices is to contact SMS via telephone. The number I found was (0044)8707663320 if calling from outside the UK (08707663320 from the UK). Hope this helps!